Air Traffic Management

It is the end of November, and with December usually flying by very fast, I thought I could already write a short post on what I think will be the top five challenges that ATM Training in Europe will face in 2008.  So here they come:

No 1. To understand the training requirements for transitioning to and achieving the 2020 ATM system as established by SESAR.

No 2. To review and standardise initial training common core content for ATCOs and ATSEPs.

No 3. To integrate new and old tools, modes and media into seamless, effective and efficient training programmes.

No 4. For training providers to better understand regulatory needs.

No 5. For regulators to mature their training regulatory process and to establish a rapport with the training providers.

I hope I will be able to address some of these challenges in greater detail on this blog in 2008.

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In a recent workshop on pedagogic aspects of e-learning I learnt an important lesson about training design in general.

During this workshop we argued, with the help of Clive Shepherd that in order to have integrated technology facilitated training, the process of choosing training modes and media should be integrated within the overall training design process. Moreover these choices should be done at the right moment, when other relevant information is available. By this I mean that one should not start by saying: I need an e-learning programme before having really analysed the training need, the objectives, the learning and all the other things which confirm the context.

In brief the design process could be described as the following:

1 Keep in mind the situation at hand:

What is the learning requirement?

What are the training objectives?

Who is the target audience?

What are the practical constraints?Â

2 Determining an overall strategy to meet the learning need

How will the learning objectives be met?

Decide on the modes to be used

3 Selecting the media

See the media one has at their disposal

Ensure that the media are capable to deliver according to your overall plan

Keep in mind the constraintsÂ

As an embracing activity throughout the process, ensure that you optimise on the efficiency without sacrificing the effectiveness

I really felt I learnt an important lesson as many times we tend to take shortcuts within this process and either do what we always do or do what we would like to do with the training without taking a step by step process to analysing, deciding and designing.

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The Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation [CANSO] has recently published its Global vision of the future air navigation services.

The document in itself identifies a number of areas of change in the operational and regulatory domains necessary to achieve a global ATM system.  I found it quite clear to read -unlike some other documents issued recently on the subject.   In its 16 pages -rather short, it explains CANSO’s views on items such as: customer focus, business-like approach, civil military collaboration, the people working in the ATM system, environment, safety management,  etc.

What particularly interested me in this document was the vision CANSO has on the page dedicated to the people working in the system where it recommends a change from National Training Standards to Globally Harmonised Training Standards.

This is a very important recognition, especially in the light of recent corporatisation and privatisation of several European ANSPs [many of which members of CANSO themselves] who in the interest of surviving in the commercial world have endorsed the strategy of isolation with regards of standard practices in training.  Europe is passing through a hard time where it comes to harmonisation of training, with many training institutions pleading for guidelines but no standards.

I simply hope that the direction set by CANSO is endorsed by its member ANSPs and we start once more moving towards harmonising training in European ANS…Â

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